this post was submitted on 20 May 2024
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[–] [email protected] 28 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago)

What it looks like: You shat all over the board.
What it smells like: Nasty chemicals but only when hot.
What it does: it helps distribute heat, and causes the solder to be less viscuous and stick to metals readily.
What it feels like to start using it: Wow, it's like I just gained one year of soldering experience!
What it feels like to remove it from the board after soldering: Aargh... I swear, one more board and I go buy an ultrasonic cleaner. (Some brands are easier but I usually need to employ a spudger, brush, then alcohol annd Q-tip)

Note that some solder comes with a core that contains flux or some similar substance of that effect.